U.s. Sends Commandos To Mediterranean

WASHINGTON — The United States has sent a commando unit to the Mediterranean to be ready to storm the hijacked Trans World Airlines plane.

But American officials said on Saturday that they were counting on Algeria and the Red Cross to bring about a non-violent resolution of the crisis.

The officials, who would not confirm the dispatch of the so-called Delta commando unit from Fort Bragg, N.C., said all prudent measures were being taken, including military ones.

Information on the unit came from reliable non-administration sources, but the whereabouts of the team was not disclosed.

A similar move was made in December when members from the Delta unit were dispatched to the Mediterranean in case a rescue opportunity arose during the hijacking of a Kuwaiti airliner to Iran.

Officials said the Delta team would be used in response to a request from a country that lacked the expertise to storm a plane. Algeria has not shown any interest in help, officials said.

The administration's crisis center, dealing with the first major hijacking of an American airliner since President Reagan took office, expressed satisfaction that the plane had remained on the ground in Algiers and that more than half the passengers had been freed.